


Memoir: The Elephant

by Torrent_River123



Series: Old Works Written in Creative Writing Class [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Animals, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Hand Feeding, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, crazy elephant, elephant attack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-29
Updated: 2019-12-29
Packaged: 2021-02-19 10:43:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22009714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Torrent_River123/pseuds/Torrent_River123
Relationships: Daughter and Father, Main character and Elephant
Series: Old Works Written in Creative Writing Class [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1586701





	Memoir: The Elephant

This is an unexpected event. One that has taught me much about myself and the world around me.

I entered the grand gated zoo. It was one of the biggest zoos in all of China. Two majestic bronze tigers guarded the entrance. Each had a paw an embroidered silver ball. Their lips are pulled back in a roar as their sharp eyes gleamed yellow in the piercing sun. Impatient clouds danced across the sky. Fans posted on poles whirred angrily; the bee-like hum filling the air. My dad was with me at that time. The wind played with his almond-black hair as we walked.

“ _Squawk, Rerfff, Squawwk_ ” The fiery sunset colored flamingos were yelling at each other, haggling over who has the best feathers and feed.

“Do you want to feed them?” The sound of my dad’s deep rumble startled me out of careful observations.

“Sure, why not?”

We quickly paid the money and went inside. The birds flapped their massive ruby colored wings in our faces and plunged their beaks in the cups that are filled with feed. Several more flamingos rushed at us and jumped on my dad’s arm. Beaks flashed as they ripped feathers from each other’s neck.

We walked and looked in the exhibits, the animals frolicked in the pools and chased the pigeons away from their food. Lions roared, and the prey animals crowded in a corner. _Poor prey creatures, they are frightened by all the noise and the roaring lions. You could see that in their eyes._

Bikes zipped around and sang a robotic “twinkle-twinkle little star” every time someone was blocking their path. It was chaotic but at the same time very orderly. We walked our way to the elephant exhibit, dodging several bikes. This was very annoying; my dad yelled and waved his fist at a few people that didn’t put on the mechanical song. I couldn’t blame them. That mechanical song sounded like someone have messed with the radio so that instead of the normal songs and the news people talk, it sounds like two broken plates rubbing against each other.

I was being a complete nerd, lecturing about animals and their genus, habitats, and behavior. My dad listened quietly to my rambling and lecturing. His thoughts somewhere else in his mind. _I can’t blame him; his job is quite energy-sapping._

The trees have cast the shadows on the sidewalk. Providing the much-needed relief to the scorching overhead sun. Birds chirped and hopped in the shadows of the trees. Peacocks strutted to the patches of sun and fanned out their massive tails. The catching the sun and spilling the light like green-gold diamonds

We walked to the elephant exhibit. Two elephants were playing in the mud; trees with spray hoses created a majestic waterfall. Several elephants were using their trunks to gather the water from the waterfall and drinking it. Around the corner, there are two elephants performing tricks. A large crowd is gathered around the performing elephants. One of them turned around and around in great circles; the other walked on its hind legs the trainer threw buckets and buckets of sliced apples, carrots, and other goods at them. They stopped to pick the treats up and walked away. Walking off the performing stage they went straight for the mud-pool and started to fling mud at the elephants under the mechanical waterfall. The mud splattered all over them, creating a gloopy brown and grey blob with small beady eyes. Everyone in the crowd laughed. The elephant then washed the mud off and charged at the elephants playing in the mud-pool. They flung mud everywhere and soon a full-blown mud-fight ensued.

We walked off at this point. Behind the mud-fighting elephants, there is a large petting place. There you can feed zebras, ride camels, pet ostriches and fish for goldfish and many more. At each exhibit, there is a long, complicated line of people at every event. All of the people there were craning their necks to see what was happening.

I saw the elephant ride and my eyes gleamed. _An elephant ride. That will be quite interesting, I never rode an elephant before, except when I was 3 but that was a long time ago._ My dad saw my eyes gleam at the elephant ride and asked,

“Do you want to ride the elephant?”

“Yep!”

I ran off to the ticket stand in the middle of the petting place; My dad jogging behind me.

“How much does riding the elephant cost?” I said when I reached the ticket stand.

“It costs 20 yuan.” The keeper replied cheerfully.

At this point, my dad ambled up next to me and gave the 20 yuan to the keeper.

We got the ticket and stepped in line. The excitement is contagious, soon I was jumping up and down like some over-excited toddler every time a lion roars or an ostrich booms at some zookeeper. The line got shorter and shorter I felt the impatience grow stronger and stronger until… it’s my turn!

I hopped to the stand and climbed on a peaceful-minded elephant. The thick hide is warm and gave off the sweet smell of lion-grass and fresh leaves. Its strong shoulders moved under my legs. We ambled across the muddy track there were carrots everywhere for the trainers have tossed them to the ground to encourage the elephant to move on. _That’s a wonderful way to do that, these elephants will have to be starving if there aren’t any snacks. Plus, this brings some fun to the elephants who walk around the track so many times._

I looked around the place for a little bit. There is an artificial tree in the center of the enclosure. There are small black nubs that let out a hissing sound as it sprays a fine mist in the enclosure. My dad stands on the little photo-taking stand, a bright smile on his face as he snaps away; the camera flashing brilliant light.

The elephant ambled off the path to a drinking pool. It sucked in a trunk full of water and sprayed it all over me and its sides till we are dripping wet with water and some elephant boogers. Then it began to drink the water in the pool. That strong trunk rapidly sucked in water and sprayed it in his gaping mouth. In the time I took to say mouse, that elephant has gulped down three trunksful of water.

The elephant has finished and looked at me with its beady eyes as if saying “Are you ready?”

“Yep, I’m ready.” 

That have gotten quite a few confused and weird looks from the people in the stands. After all, it’s not every day you hear some teenager talk to an elephant. The elephant once hearing that I was ready to move on started it’s way to the main path. In the corner of my eye, the elephant behind me charges and at the same time let out a loud, ground rumbling trumpet. Then without much warning, the elephant behind me charged. The elephant that I was riding sat on the ground and wouldn’t budge. Fear, like lightning, flooded through me. The people on the stands stepped back. Shock and anger flooded their eyes. My dad looked like he was about to jump into the enclosure to get me out of that fight. Dozens of trainers used dusty dusters and threw carrots as an attempt to distract the two elephants to stop fighting. 

Somehow, despite the jostling, I’ve stayed on the elephant that I was riding. The elephant, clearly spooked by this attack has run on the track in wild stops and starts every time a trainer approaches. The eyes of the elephant buggy. Calming down, it has stopped and following the fluff-on-a-stick walked to the stand. 

There my dad was waiting. He grabbed my arm and hauled me off of that elephant. He is shaking but it’s hard to tell. His eyes have given his worry, fear, and anger away though. He quickly patted my arms and legs to make sure that I haven’t somehow got bruised.

“I’m ok, _Dad_.”

“What if you aren’t.”

“Well, the what if didn’t happen, so stop worrying!”

We walked off. Even though the people in the stands saw that attack, they still continued to ride the elephants as if nothing had happened. _Are they all mouse-brains? Still riding the elephants even after that attack? I half-expected them to all run to some other part of the zoo._

We walked on. My dad still fuming over the attack and how “irresponsible” the zookeepers are. We looked at some monkeys and birds. Eventually, we have walked out of the zoo.

Boy, that was one interesting day!


End file.
